The UK Ministry of Defence has spent a record 34.1 billion pounds ($45 billion) with British businesses in the 2025/26 financial year, up 3.2 percent from the previous year.
Northern Ireland recorded the largest percentage increase, up 63 percent to 464 million pounds ($613 million).
The ministry said much of that rise reflected a change in which it recorded spending on contracts for three Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ships.
Spending also rose by 24.7 percent in the East of England and 21 percent in the East Midlands, while it fell in the South West, Wales, and London.
The South East received the largest total, at 8.4 billion pounds ($11 billion).
Spending on military equipment and its maintenance accounted for 20.9 billion pounds ($27.6 billion), or 61 percent of the domestic total.
Spending in the weapons and ammunition category, which also includes military fighting vehicles, rose 18 percent to 2.4 billion pounds ($3 billion).
Direct payments to small- and medium-sized businesses reached 1.3 billion pounds ($1.7 billion).
They accounted for 4 percent of direct spending with UK industry, the same share as the previous year.
Defense Spending Plans
The figures come as the UK government plans to spend 298 billion pounds ($394.2 billion) on defense over the next four years under its Defence Investment Plan.
“We cannot strengthen our deterrence without having a strong, sovereign defence industry here at home,” Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said.
“That’s why we are backing Britain, using the biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the Cold War to boost jobs and skills at home and to build the capability and technology we need to keep us safe in a more dangerous world.”
